CoAD Drabbles
by Linxcat
Summary: Some little drabble-ish things, most of them TorakxRenn.
1. Hair

It was her hair.

Something about her hair captivated him, mesmerised him, and drove him to distraction.

The way it gleamed in the dappled sunlight, how it blazed on a summer's day. He couldn't remember ever finding something so...intriguing? No, that wasn't the right word. Fascinating? Attractive?

Bale once told him that his favourite part of Renn was her eyes; they were the deepest indigo, like the name-souls of storm clouds reflected in water. Mysterious and alluring with hidden depths, but dangerous too. You could tell a lot about a person from their eyes.

Torak had to disagree. Yes, Renn had wonderful eyes and a very pretty face, and not forgetting, although not remarking to her lest you wished to get slapped, that everything below her face was lovely too. But her mother, the Viper Mage, had all of these as well, down to irises the exact same shade of azure, and yet he had not recognised her until it was pointed out to him.

The thing that made Renn _Renn_ was her cascade of crimson hair. Where Veshru's tresses were midnight black, sleek but lifeless, Renn's were blood red and flowed with the same grace as her body. As long as her spirit burned as bright as her hair, she would never be like her mother.

"_Torak!"_

"_Sorry, Renn."_

_Torak gave her a sheepish, wolfish grin, face a little flushed, and she rolled her eyes at him and stalked off. He'd gotten distracted again, daydreaming, but at least she didn't know she was the subject of them. Or more specifically, her hair._

_He clambered to his feet and stumbled after her, catching her shoulder. _

"_What now?" she exclaimed, exasperated with his absent-mindedness. _

_With one swift, fluid movement, his fingers stroked down the silky twines of her plait and brought forth a leaf. She blinked in surprise._

"_Erm...thanks." she gave him a strange look, blushing at little at his close proximity. Then her face hardened, "Now get your head out of spirit-land and get hunting!"_

_Torak laughed and obeyed, squatting beside her to peer at some elk tracks printed in the riverbank mud, feeling rather pleased with himself, casually dropping the leaf back on the floor where he had found it. _

_Yes, his favourite part of Renn was definitely her hair. _


	2. Fix You

"_And the tears come streaming down your face,_

_When you lose something you can't replace,_

_When you love someone but it goes to waste,_

_What could be worse?_

_Lights will guide you home,_

_And ignite your bones,_

_And I will try, to fix you_" –Coldplay

--

It had taken all of Torak's strength – all his soul – to defeat the Soul Eaters.

And in breaking them, he had broken himself.

She'd caught him, once, a few days after that fateful day, standing at the very edge of the Raven camp where the trees met the clearing, just...staring.

She came a little closer and noticed that he was not wearing his jerkin. His muscled shoulders were shaking and his head bent down as he succumbed to his sobs, dropping to his knees.

Silently, she crouched beside him and enveloped him in her arms, shielding him from the strange looks of the clan members, shielding him from the world, because he had been hurt enough already.

His hot tears were dripping down her collar so she held him closer, feeling their wet warmth on her cheek as she threaded her fingers through his dark hair, her other hand rubbing circles on his back. He did not return the hug, but hung as limp as a rag doll in her arms, his knees barely supporting him, his whole being shaking with anguished cries that had been suppressed for too long.

There was nothing passionate about the embrace; their bond was closer than friends, more intimate than family and stronger than clan could ever be. And Renn knew that there was no one she'd rather live the rest of her days out alongside. They were bound together by the heart.

His arms slipped around her as his sobs became quieter, giving her an unspoken thank you for her comfort. She kissed him softly on the head. She longed to make it all better; as if the simple action of her lips pressing against his temple could erase the pain of the last few years and bring all that he had lost back into being.

And he had lost so much. Much more than any boy of fifteen summers should loose.

And he was broken, because defeating the Soul Eaters had cost him and others a great price.

As his crying subsided and the strength began to flow back into his bones, Renn held her broken best friend tight, and made him a promise:

She would not let go until she had fixed him.


End file.
